SCIENCE AND INDUSTRY. 
FUEL OIL BECOMING SCARCE AND EXPENSIVE. 
Failure of existing and prospective oil-fields to maintain equality 
of production to the consumption of petroleum products has been 
predicted by reliable authorities. The truth of this is already becoming 
apparent, and the situation is acute in certain parts of the country. 
In March of this year, states Chemical and Metallurgical Engineering, 
the Standard Oil Co. (California) increased the price of fuel oil 25 cents 
per barrel, and of gasoline 2 cents per gallon, at the same time paying 
an additional 25 cents per barrel for crude oil at the wells. In 
announcing this advance, the company stated that an increase in prices 
was the only known and tried means at its disposal that would bring 
about an increased production of crude oil, prevent the shipment of fuel 
oil and gasoline to competitive markets, and at the same time restrain” 
demand. In January, 1920, the output of California’s refineries 
amounted to about one-tenth of the gasoline and one-quarter of the 
fuel-oil production of the United States. It is but a question of time 
until conditions such as now exist in California will be reflected 
throughout the country, and ultimately result in becoming a question 
of national importance, since there is now lacking an adequate means 
of effectively combating the situation. Power derived from fuel is 
becoming increasingly expensive, and the consumer of power so obtained 
must face an uncertainty in the supply, this being particularly .true 
of that from fuel oil. Recent experiences, the result of strikes affecting 
transportation and the production of fuels, have brought this forcibly 
to attention. In establishing new industries, the source of power 
and the effect of increased consumption on the future costs ‘are factors 
which must be given consideration; more particularly will increased 
power costs adversely affect electro-chemical interests. 
POWER ALCOHOL. 
With every prospect of transport rates and passenger fares rising 
above their present levels, it becomes more and more imperative that 
some cheap form of liquid fuel should be developed. There seems 
little likelihood of petrol coming down in price so long as the demand 
exceeds the supply, and thé only alternatives to which we can turn 
are home-produced benzol and power alcohol. About twelve months - 
ago great hopes were entertained of benzol, but the position has been . 
completely changed by the refusal of the Parliamentary Committees, 
which have recently been dealing with the Gas Regulation Bill, to 
enforce the recovery of. benzol from coal gas. The motorist probably 
has never quite understood the fact that, in order to make a profit out 
of the process, not even the largest gas undertaking can afford to sell 
“stripped” benzol at the price prevailing to-day, particularly when 
consideration is given to the fact that town gas is, in the future, to 
be sold on a thermal instead of on a volume basis. The result is that 
the benzol which will be available for fuel purposes will be no more 
than that washed from coke-oven gas and produced from tar. As the 
quantity derived from these sources must necessarily be trifling com- 
pared with the total consumption of petrol, it would seem that the one 
remaining hope now lies in the development of power alcohol. 
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